RANGEELEY RISHI, TERE HUNNAR KE RANG AMAR - By Ali Peter John

A truly talented actor is always hungry for good roles and Rishi Kapoor was the hungriest actor I have known since the time he made his debut as a child actor - Ali Peter John

There were times when it looked like he was not very happy with the kind of roles he was being offered, especially the countless romantic roles he had to play in film after film.

At one stage he was so desperate about playing action roles that he even offered financial concession through filmmakers who would offer him roles in which would have him doing action of different kinds.

But, he could meet his needs and fulfill his talents only when he started playing character and elderly roles. And once he started playing these roles, there was no stopping him from playing some of the best character in Hindi films.

And he played one of his most enjoyable character in “Sharmaji Namkeen” which fortunately turned out to be one of his best roles and unfortunately was his last film and last role.

The film is directed by a first-timer Hitesh Bhatia is the unusual story about a man who finds a new meaning to his life after he joins a kitty party of women whose specialty is cooking. Rishi who loved good food in real life and who loved asking “Naya kya hai khaane mein?” literally lived the character of Sharmaji.

Towards the end of the shooting of the film, Rishi knew that he had a few days to live and made the best of his role.

He even asked his director to take as many close-ups as possible. And after he died his role was completed by Paresh Rawal in perhaps first of its kind role.

With the completion and now the film will be premiered on March 31, 2022 on Amazon Prime Video’s OTT platform. It can be said that the curtain has finally come down on one of the most memorable and glorious chapters in the history of Indian cinema.

Incidentally, Juhi Chawla who had teamed up with Rishi in several films has also played an important character in the film which also has Satish Kaushik in a major role.

RISHI KAPOOR TOH CHALE GAYE LEKIN EK AISA CHHAP CHHODH GAYE JO WAQT, ZAMANA AUR HAALAT KABHI MITTA NAHI SAKTE